


Take the House, Not the People

by Starysky205



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: "Omega" Logan, Alpha Roman, Alpha Virgil, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Human AU, I chose to lead with this one as I joined this fandom, I took a long time with their surnames, M/M, Omega Patton, Stressful Situations, also Deciet's name, and also very sorry, i am exhausted, it makes for a very honest presentation card, surprise, the resistance, the system does not know all, there's like a brief thing with moxiety, you know
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-18
Updated: 2018-12-07
Packaged: 2019-08-03 20:10:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 12,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16332662
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Starysky205/pseuds/Starysky205
Summary: We are told there existed a moment where we weren’t divided by letters, that when they appeared chaos ensued, that the system was the only way to save us from ourselves.The system keeps us safe, the system knows all.(Please bear with me, this will be a ride) ((Thanks to logically_a_clueless_moron for the title))





	1. I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I know I should’ve started with something lighter to get you guys used to my way of writing, but where’s the fun in that?  
> Hey, uh… the Omegaverse au is really misogynistic? Like, it’s really fucked up; that’s gonna come up later in the story.

We are told there existed a moment where we weren’t divided by letters, but even then what little things could move us apart were like chasms of hatred and destruction; and when it happened, when the first letters appeared, mayhem arose.

From the desperation of those who were watching the world crumble to pieces quicker than it could ever be rebuilt, the System was born. The only way to bring back order, to stop the fight… the only way to peace, yet also a way to keep us in check.

We aren’t born with the letters, rather, they come to us in what once was our puberty, and we are told to get tested and report back to the System. Maybe it was a more throughout process in the beginning, but time has made the System overconfident, and the practice flawed.

See they don’t second-guess what you report back, so long as you have the right attitude and scent, you can pretend to be any letter. Because to lie about your letter, means getting the wrong kind of ‘assigned mate’; and why would anyone want that?

You only get one mate, and you’re advised not to make any lasting relationships before the selecting process, as you have very low chances of remaining together. The System pairs everyone based in compatibility, of attitudes, genetics, mentalities… the system knows all.

The world is split in three, the wide majority of people remained unaffected by what changed the rest of us, they receive the name of betas. Betas are to take the role of mediators, to act as a barrier between the other two letters until the day of mating; they are the awkward in between that exists to remind us we’re no longer humans.

Then there’s the ‘privileged’ ones, those who got the longer end of the stick, the ones who received the name of alphas. Alphas have the ability - no matter their gender - to impregnate others, which comes with the fun side effect of making them both possessive and volatile, they take the dominant role, and are aggressive towards others in the same letter and sometimes those ‘below’ them.

The last are those that receive the name of omegas; capable of giving birth no matter their gender, they are stripped of their free will, expected to be submissive, to cater to those ‘above’ them, to bow their heads to whoever they are mated with and be reduced to mere objects to breed and show of. And yet, it is considered an honor to be the ones who brought an omega to the world, because without omegas, the letters would stop.

 

“Why would anyone not want to be an alpha?”

The question is understandable, and the way Cecile’s face shifts as he speaks it is to be expected, but Virgil doesn’t think he’d be able to answer; or rather, he would, but not something that would satiate the omega. See, Virgil would rather not be the one calling the shots, nor the one taking them, but he can’t pretend to be a beta because his attitude is too unstable for it; and he can’t really ask a beta to take his place.

Cecile isn’t doing it for self-comfort, he’s doing it to prove a point, to break the illusion everyone is under, show them how wrong the system can be. The omega probably wouldn’t have approached Virgil, but Cecile doesn’t have any other options either; so he makes Virgil part of the resistance, and that means he needs to ask Virgil some questions.

“I’d rather not be what an alpha is supposed to be”

Cecile gives him a smile at that, proof that Virgil has chosen his words correctly; he likes the fact that Cecile is so honest about his reactions, it makes interactions a smidge easier to deal with.

“That works for me”

And so, the scheme begins. It isn’t hard to pull off, scent blockers and scent extractors, a few lessons on how to better play their parts, a few tricks to make sure no one was the wiser. Virgil gets to meet the other members of the resistance one by one, which he’s grateful for as he’ll have to deal with them constantly if Cecile’s plan works.

Virgil has only on job for the day of mating, get the three other people that will be sent to the rooms with him, to not tattle on them. It was easier said than done.


	2. II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I googled dad shoes on the image search, and… what is it with sport shoes that makes them dad like? I didn’t use them in the story, but like, I still want answers.  
> I’m sorry moxiety fans, I’ll probs hurt you a bit; also prinxiety and logicality fans, I apologize for using your ships like this.

The mating process was an odd one. It was performed once a year for those who had come of age, and started by dividing that generation’s group of omegas and alphas into groups of four, as picked by the system; two of each letter in them, though numbers were often odd, those who had been left aside in the previous generation’s would then join.

These quartets would find each other and walk their way towards the mating rooms only once all four were found; it was set this way so that omegas would have one last comfort before they begun the rest of their lives as an alpha’s ‘prized toy’. Ok, so maybe Virgil had some thoughts on how the system worked, sue him; the omegas in the resistance all seemed to agree with him that it was bullshit.

They were each given a paper with information, one side was a number and a color, on the other were the names of the three other people in their group together with their letters. On the floor were painted a ton of colored squares with numbers, each in front of a specific door; as they were brought separate, Virgil only had to trek through other omegas to find his own.

On a brown square with the number 178, stood an eager looking omega dressed in a baby-blue polo, khakis, a sweater around his neck, and brown loafers. Virgil double checks his indications before sighing and looking back at the other.

“Are you Patton Ithicos?”

The boy’s resting smile widens into a grin, mocha eyes crinkling at the edges, eagerness evolving into exhilaration.

“Yes! You must be Virgil”

Virgil shrugs and steps over the imaginary boundary, making his way into the brown square, momentarily noting how obviously they crash when standing side by side. He feels a little off set by Patton’s apparent enthusiasm, until he notices how his hands shake, Virgil shifts just slightly closer.

“We still have another hour; you can relax”

Patton is understandably weary at first, but eventually his shoulders drop along with his grin, he shifts until they’re touching; Virgil relaxes his own body before he presses slightly against Patton’s shoulder, contact was the best way to comfort an omega.

Patton breathes in an obviously calculated way beside him, and Virgil has a thing where he can’t even think of the process of counting breath without starting to do it, so he finds himself matching him half-unconsciously, half irritated. 

They spent most of the hour like that, though at one point they both sat down on the ground, still pressed together. When the alphas came in, Virgil was glad to see Cecile walk pass, though perhaps he was a little too obvious about it.

“Were you expecting to get him?”

Virgil lets out a laugh, which shakes his entire body.

“That would’ve been weird, considering we’re related”

That was the other thing, in order to be allowed to meet privately after presenting, they had to claim a family bond, which they only pulled out thanks to a sketchy beta who had joined their ranks a little after Virgil.

“Aw, he’s worried”

To Patton’s credit, Cecile was staring directly at them from his place in a red square a ways back, which was amazingly filled with people from the resistance; clearly the system knew nothing.

Virgil glares at him as he shrugs, thankful that Patton can’t see his face, Cecile chuckles and finally directs his attention to the rest of his group, and then there’s rosewood and laurel. Patton reacts before he does, coloring their newly created bubble with his honey and orange smell, Virgil follows with his borrowed scent, strawberries and jasmine.

The alpha practically towers over them, standing in a way that makes him look taller than he probably is. Patton stiffens beside him for a beat before he’s jumping into a standing position, beaming at the new arrival, Virgil lets out a long sigh and gets on his feet too.

“Greetings lovelies, I am Roman Pierce”

Hazel eyes glance at him briefly before the brunet pours his entire attention on Patton, Virgil is grateful for the knowledge that there won’t be any mating today; he isn’t too fond of the fact that the alpha assigned to him can’t tell he’s flirting with the wrong omega.

Patton is also aware of the fact that this isn’t ‘his’ alpha, if his body language is anything to go by, and Virgil is fully preparing himself for the reaction Roman will have once he finds out, because the omega looks about ready to tell him. But before anything can be said another new scent joins the fray, rain and old books, and they all turn to it.

There is a myriad of thoughts that rapid fire across Virgil’s brain as his moss green eyes meet nearly indigo ones, the majority of which are superficial and thus inconsequential, but the most prominent one is a clear sense of similarity. It makes no sense, everything about the new arrival screams alpha, and no one other than Virgil seems to notice anything wrong, so why does he feel so certain that they are the same?

“Logan! I thought you’d gotten lost”

 It isn’t until the alpha goes to glare at Roman that Virgil realizes the staring he was doing was more of a two-way thing; he wonders briefly if he’s also been found out, but shoves the thought aside as it won’t matter in a few hours.

Patton seems disappointed, though Virgil is sure he’s the only one who notices, as the two alphas are too busy discussing. The system is truly flawed, because Virgil would trade places with Patton with little to no hesitation.


	3. III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You’re thrown into this with little to no guidance, but rest assured all will make sense eventually.  
> I had to google car parts because I only half-know them in Spanish, much less English.

It takes a little longer for the call to be made allowing them to advance into the halls that lead to the rooms, but with the alphas present, there’s no sitting on the ground this time, as it would be viewed badly; Virgil still has to keep an image of shy but otherwise faithful follower of the system.

Logan introduces himself properly once he’s done exchanging sharp words with Roman, he ends up being the one to make the alpha realize his mistake; Virgil plays the part of embarrassed and hurt omega as a way to cover his reaction to the way Logan talks. It is a bit unnerving, how affected he is by the possibly fake alpha, though by the way those almost indigo eyes keep going back to him, he isn’t the only one.

The call is made, and Virgil gets one last glance at Cecile, who gives him a subtle nod, before the door in front of the brown square opens and his group has to move.

The walls are a weird creamy yellow color, with patches of white where the paint is cracked or peeled, the floor is paved in light gray tiles, in a rhomboidal pattern with smaller black tiles in between. The hall extends until it gets blurry before it curves away from sight and connects to more halls with the same style, making a labyrinth like structure.

Omegas are expected to match the pace of their assigned alphas, so Virgil has to keep up with Roman, wondering if the eyes he feels are there on purpose or just because they’re walking in the front. Virgil also wonder if he perhaps angered Cecile somehow, because his group makes it all the way to the two doors for their mating rooms, and he’s not prepared to do any stalling.

Thankfully, there’s a loud alarm noise filling the halls before Roman can open one of the doors. Virgil isn’t good with words so he just acts, whirling around and grabbing a hold of Patton before running through the halls, thanking any higher beings that he remembers the maps the resistance had made of the place. He doesn’t turn to check if the alphas are behind them, doesn’t need to, Roman is trying to get him to slow down, and Logan’s scent is still close.

He only stops after rounding a corner and seeing a familiar face by a hole in the wall, he can see the pavement of the parking lot just beyond her feet.

“Virgil, over here!”

Out of all the omegas in the resistance Kristi is of the only two in Virgil’s age group, and though he’ll never say it out loud for fear of angering Cecile, she’s his favorite. She makes a good job not letting out her excitement as she guides them through the hole and to Virgil’s car and watches all four of them get on.

“Cici says to do a few turns before going to point a, left you a blocker in the glove box”

“Thanks”

She pats the roof twice and Virgil starts the engine, taking the long way to where he needs to go, and making a few extra turns as requested. Roman was fuming in the backseat beside Logan, Patton was eying the speedometer, Logan was staring at the window, and Virgil… Virgil was fighting to keep his scent in check; they weren’t even half-way through the woods, he couldn’t let them find out just yet.

“Patton, could you pass me the blockers in the glovebox, please?”

He knows his hands are shaking, and he’s sweating, so he isn’t surprised when Patton follows his request with little hesitation; he slows down the car as he’s handed one of the pills and quickly dry swallows it. The pill does a quick work of both his own scent and the one he’s borrowed, but that’s probably for the better, it’d be weird to take a blocker and for it not to affect his perceived scent.

“Ok, that’s it, stop this car”

It’s a coincidence really, that getting their destination just so happened to require them to pass through the main avenue, and that one of the people in the resistance, most likely Tanya, just so happened to choose that moment to blow something to smithereens. Virgil notes that all three of his passengers are immediately drawn to look in the direction of the loud noise and bright light; Roman has frozen two seconds away from starting his next sentence, and Virgil waits until they finish passing the street before he breaks the silence.

“We’ll stop in another two blocks, get somewhere relatively safe, and then you can ask your questions”

Roman works his jaw before staring straight into the review mirror at Virgil.

“What? No, I just think one of us should go front seat, unless you want to get in trouble”

Virgil was weary, though Roman was right, he didn’t trust the alpha yet, or any of his passengers to be completely honest; but if they decided to stick around - if Roman wasn’t just looking for a good enough excuse to get them out without alerting Virgil -, he could maybe learn to.

He drives into what looks like a private parking lot for a building, the door sliding open as the car makes the approach, and closing behind them once they’re inside. Virgil slows the car to a stop as he sees a figure waiting for them, and he feels a weight lifted from him as he recognizes them as Thomas.

Considering they made for the good majority of the population, it came as no surprise that the resistance was mostly beta; Thomas was one of those betas. Virgil liked most betas in the resistance, but Thomas stood out.

He turns the car off, unlocks the doors, and climbs out, the others follow after a few beats, Patton immediately goes to him. Virgil knows the omega only does it because he’s logistically the safest, what with his perceived letter, but it still feels nice.

“Hey Virgil, shouldn’t you be driving to base right now?”

Virgil shrugs.

“Change of plans”

Thomas nods in understanding, then directs his gaze to the three people he didn’t know.

“I’m sure you have questions, but whether I answer them or not depends on how you answer my own”  

Virgil takes the chance to look at all three of them, watching as the two alphas exchange looks, Logan looks at Patton momentarily but the omega isn’t looking at him, all while Roman nods agreeing for all three of them.

“What’s the prize of your freedom?”

It’s a trick question, one that allowed them to start chipping at the illusion of the system people normally had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please direct all ideas about the title of this fic to my Tumblr @starysky205  
> Atte. Skyler Ghesh


	4. IV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I’m better at multiple perspectives than I am at single view stories. The thesaurus was my good friend for this one.  
> Sometimes, I remember to use gender non-specific pronouns when two characters don’t know each other.

Logan had always thought he’d present as an alpha, not because he exhibited that which made alphas proud - though he did have the right attitude for one if these last years were anything to go by -, but rather because it felt right. Now Logan wasn’t usually one for choosing gut over logic, but that was precisely why he was so taken aback when his letter was something different.

However, he had a chance meeting with another person who was going through a similar situation, but unlike Logan, knew more about how to deal with it.

Granted, he had been apprehensive about the mating process, and whether his part in it would ruin the system’s hard work. He was, to be completely honest, rather thankful of the current situation, as it precluded him from partaking in that particular dilemma.

Sure, there were plenty of things to paint the situation as less than ideal, majorly to do with Roman’s fated omega. Virgil was clearly hiding something related to his scent, something that rang familiar to Logan, and something much bigger than him.

Logan had his attention on him as the beta stranger made their question, and thus is privy to his every expression. Virgil was obviously expecting this beta to ask such a thing, despite how alarming the query sounded, therefore there had to exist a deeper meaning to the question.

“A life saved”

As used as he was to Roman’s theatrics, he could still recognize that others were not, hence he wasn’t all that surprised at the reaction the words of the alpha had on the room. The beta blinked at Roman a few times before their expression settled into a mildly disturbed one.

“Are you joking, or…”

Roman frowned in clear displeasure.

“Why would I joke about such things?”

“That’s worrying, like, very good of you, but still very worrying”

They turned to look at Virgil pointedly, who shrugged in ignorance. Logan supposed their assay wasn’t that odd, considering what Roman more or less confessed; though the beta was quick to get his expression under control.

If it wasn’t for the fact that Logan was so bothered by Virgil, and so aware of everything he was doing at the moment, he would’ve missed the flash of fear that crossed his eyes as this happened.

“Here’s the thing, though I want to believe you, I know you aren’t really telling the truth”

It happened in what seemed like seconds, Roman reacting badly to having his beliefs questioned, Virgil springing into action and dragging him away from the beta, showing a crack in the mask he had so carefully crafted for himself.

“Maybe a little less insulting the alpha Thomas”

“Sorry Virge, what I meant was, you’re not saving any lives complying to the system, so how come you’re so willing to give them your freedom?”

Virgil releases Roman and Logan watches as the words sink into his head, and realizes what they’re trying to accomplish. The beta, Thomas apparently, goes back to a more amicable expression.

“See, some of us are getting really tired of people giving their freedom away without noticing, tired of how blinded they are by the system”

Virgil rolls his eyes, and steps in.

“We’re part of the resistance, wanna join?”

“Virgil!”

Virgil shrugs, as if unaware of how effortlessly he’s shattered the tension building in the room.

“You were acting a little too deceit”

Thomas goes immediately pale at that, swallowing noticeably as he nods slowly, there must be some story behind that.

There are plenty of ways in which Logan does not fit the mold, and he’s aware of these differences as parts of a butterfly effect of sorts that has shaped him. The curiosity, and interest, and might he risk it attraction, he feels towards Virgil is a surprising variable; and how it might develop could mean a full change to the overall outcome of his being.

He might perhaps not be as much of a stranger to emotion as first perceived; but that’s yet to be confirmed. For now, it’s simply a new hypothesis.


	5. V

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I’m happy because :V is my favorite emoticon  
> I decided to make Deceit Thomas’ twin at the last second, but if you were curious, his surname would’ve ben Henspit.

There’s a lot to explain, and Virgil is beyond glad that Thomas is the one answering the questions, as he wouldn’t have been able to do so with like half of the things they brought up; he isn’t all that involved to be perfectly honest.

Eventually they are led to what’s been outfitted to look like a living room, only there’s no door, the only connection to the outside are the windows, which have been painted to be one way only. And there’s the remaining three betas of the group, with three suitcases laying at their feet.

When he first met them, Virgil had an extremely hard time telling Defron apart from Thomas, even with the heterochromic eyes, but a recon mission nearly turned catastrophe had left him with a nasty scar on his face courtesy of Tanya, or rather her explosives; he was lucky not to end up half-blind, but he did have a hearing aids now. He gained his nickname a while after that, for getting himself into and out of dubious situations with his words alone, Virgil supposed it was to prove he was still useful; not that it made it any better.

He sees the recognition in the three newbies faces, not that he blames them, Ida and Blanche are scary good at what they do, particularly when they don’t have to go with one of the alphas of the group to better fit in the crowd; after the thing with Defron and Tanya everyone’s been wary of those outings, but they were necessary, so they just didn’t let Tanya partake unless they planned on using brute force from the start.

Virgil would have to talk to Cecile later, the omega really needed to stop spying on him.

“How?”

It’s still odd, the fact that Thomas hasn’t quite grasped just how obedient their age group is to Cecile; Virgil won’t say it out loud, but that’s exactly why he likes the guy so much. Blanche rolls their eyes, patting Ida in the shoulder before walking past them towards the garage; they mouth ‘good luck’ to Virgil before they go, and Virgil hates them a little.

Thankfully, Ida is the one to take the wheel and explain what’s happening to those in the room who aren’t used to Virgil’s fake half-sibling.

“Cecile told us Virge had made some friends, and asked us to get their stuff back from the system”

“Right, I forgot they made alphas and omegas move after mating”

Ida chuckles at him and moves to the baby blue suitcase with kittens and puppies on it, reaching for the name tag the system gave them.

“Patton Ithicos?”

Patton practically jumps in place, Ida immediately goes into her most inviting position, smiling patiently at him.

“Would you like to take it yourself, or would you rather I move to you?”

Patton glances around the room, but Virgil steps up.

“You’re free to make your own choices”

The omega looks at him for a moment before striding to where Ida is, and taking his suitcase. Ida gives him a thumbs up combined with a giddy grin before she moves to the next suitcase; this one is plain black, nothing that stands out.

“Logan Nagel?”

The alpha doesn’t hesitate to approach Ida, who gives Virgil a knowing look as she goes for the last suitcase, he exaggerates an eye roll at her.

“And you must be Roman”

He puffs up like he’s proud of something, Ida gets this look on her face as she looks him over, and Virgil tries not to let it show how amused he is by her.

“You’re gonna be lots of fun, aren’t you?”

He looks at her in confusion, and she pats his shoulder twice before walking past him and reaching Virgil, her expression changing entirely. Ida is an expert at facial cues, and tends to use them plenty herself, Virgil only knows so many, but he recognizes this one; it’s a bit worrying.

“What’s wrong?”

She bites her lip.

“It’s Lyle, Virge, he was really close to his cycle, Cecil almost had him stay back”

Virgil swallows.

“That’s why Alistair isn’t here, right?”

She nods solemnly.

“If it had been any other alpha a rut wouldn’t be a problem, but Lyle… well, he’s still getting his footing”

Virgil winces.

“Blanche went after them”

It’s a statement, because of course the beta did, sometimes Virgil wondered if they were purposely trying to get themselves killed.

Ida bites her lip and nods again, Virgil sighs and clenches his fists a few times.

“Fine, fine”

Virgil takes a deep breath, steeling himself, and walks towards Defron; he just wants to get this over with.

“Hello Deceit”


	6. VI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan might be very observant, but Patton is a lot more emotion savvy   
> Cecile’s a good bean, I promise!

“Hello Deceit”

Patton hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, not that they were making any effort to hide what their conversation was about. He was just… curious, about this omega that didn’t quite act like an omega, the boy who had effortlessly made both a beta and an alpha shut up.

“Ah, little Anxiety, how may I help you?”

Patton couldn’t help it really, he felt compelled to watch Virgil, to try and make sense of why he had this effect on him, on all of them honestly. No omega should have that strong of a pull, even if they were surrounded by people who clearly allowed his behavior, encouraged it even.

They were most likely speaking in code, as the words sometime made absolutely no sense, but from what Patton did catch, they were talking about the person who had left the room. The beta Virgil calls Deceit is very similar to the one called Thomas, except for the eyes, and the scar that covers half of his face.

There’s tension between them, the kind that makes something awful coil around Patton, and he’s offset by how quickly he’s become protective of the odd omega.

“Defron”

The beta, Defron apparently, sighs theatrically.

“You are such fun”

Virgil levels him with a glare that sends a shiver through Patton’s entire being, not out of fear per se, more like the kind of feeling you get when in the presence of… no, it couldn’t be.

“Fine, I’ll pass the message for you”

Virgil gives him a sharp nod and then directs his entire body towards Thomas, and by association the only door in the room.

“I’m gonna wait in the car, Logan, you’re riding shotgun”

Roman looks like he wants to complain, and Patton can’t really blame him, but Virgil disappears through the door before he can. He’s confused as to what the system was thinking, because both alphas had looked upset at their assigned mates, and to be perfectly frank, Patton was a little disappointed himself.

But it didn’t matter, it was clear that these people cared very little about what the system thought. Patton was a little bit in love with what he’s learnt of the resistance so far.

\- .... .. ... / .. ... / .- .-.. ... --- / ... --- -- . - .... .. -. --. / .. / -.. --- / .- / .-.. --- -

Patton allows himself to admire Virgil as the group finds itself once again on the streets; now that there aren’t any explosions or any other thing to make his fellow omega stomp the gas, it’s easier to see how careful he is about his driving, while somehow keeping a good consistent speed.

There was a hard expression set on his face, not exactly a frown, but he was clearly anything but calm; the tapping of fingers against the wheel, and the ever so often shaking of his free leg, were more than proof enough.

Virgil was… handsome. Not pretty like every other omega Patton had ever met, features too sharp, long slender fingers, taller than he seemed, and those eyes… those were the eyes of someone who was more used to being heard than being ignored, not the eyes of someone who was submissive for just anybody.

He supposed he wasn’t the only one who thought Virgil nice to look at, considering Logan seemed unable to stray his eyes for too long, but there was a difference; Patton wasn’t supposed to find his fellow omega attractive. No, Roman made for a safer person to be interested in; besides, Virgil seemed just as captivated by Logan as the alpha was by him.

Patton wondered if perhaps his feelings were merely a product of shock at being in such close contact to an omega who wasn’t system loyal. He’d been given the right to choose for himself, and he was a perfect stranger, Virgil probably had a lot more freedom; one the omega was obviously used to.

.. .----. -- / -... .- -.. / .- - / - .-. -. .- ... .. - .. --- -. ... / -... . - .-- . . -. / ... -.-. . -. . ...

To anyone outside, it looks merely like a shack on an abandoned field, there’s a much bigger building behind it; Patton and the others never learn what’s on the bigger building, but he guesses another garage when the omega that pulls them out of the car drives it towards said building. He has to remind himself that the reason Virgil is reacting like it’s all familiar is because to him, it most likely is.

Waiting for them, standing directly in front of the only door to the smaller building, is the same alpha that had been eyeing Virgil back in the mating place. Cecil, Patton reminds himself, has an almost animalistic grin drawn on his face, light blue eyes seemingly glowing for all the good the sunset is doing.

Patton can’t help but find the differences between the two, Cecil’s hair is darker, almost black against light but yellowish skin, which seems darker than it is when put against Virgil’s almost porcelain complexion. Cecil holds himself differently, also not quite like the alpha he’s supposed to be, still attracting attention and demanding compliance without saying a word, but too soft, almost paternal.

Patton has only met betas so far, so he wonders if everyone in the resistance is like these two, or if there’s something else to their behavior. He doesn’t have to wonder for long.

“Someone had fun”

Virgil says it with a tone that betrays the familiarity between them, unafraid and unapologetic.

“Oh Virge, it was magnificent, to see their faces as they realized their culprit was an omega”

What?

“Speaking of, have you told your companions?”

The grin has turned into something almost devilish, and Patton is a little bit scared.

“Knock yourself out”

Virgil is too calm, only Patton reminds himself that Cecil is the other’s brother, but still

“What in the world is going on?”

Patton is thankful for Roman, because at least he can actually voice his questions, and then admires his bravery when he doesn’t flinch at receiving the full weight of Cecile’s almost crazed grin.

“You see, when we presented Virgil and I traded letters with one another, I did it mostly to prove how faulty the system really is of course, but dear Virge had more personal reasons”

“What?”

Roman’s jaw is slack, his eyes widened, his posture as if paused in the middle of a movement. Cecile chuckles at him and the sound shakes Patton to the core.

“Oh dear boy, your perfect system paired you with an alpha”


	7. VII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The oxygenation of the resistance’s base is probably very similar to that of a subway, though I’m unsure how they would hide the air vents if anyone were to come looking without obstructing them. On the other hand, the idea of underground greenhouses is very good? Like, constant temperature? Hello? Also, no sun = no greenhouse effect

Virgil waits, until they make it to the elevator, until they make the slow trek downward to their underground base, until they make it into the main area, where the rest of their age group awaits, he waits so he may slip away undetected.

It’s been a long time since he had that first conversation with Cecile, since they exchanged scents with one another along with their letters, and as he enters the ‘garden’.  He goes to the few trees they have, sits with his back to the oldest one, and lets himself succumb to his feelings.

It’s been a day, emphasis very much necessary, and he’s amazed at the fact that he’s been able to hold this in for as long as he has. There are tears falling to the ground, and the bitter taste of crying in his throat, and his entire being is shaking uncontrollably.

He’s not sure why he’s so upset by it, like, sure, he never really thought of himself as a normal alpha, but just now… it felt like someone had punched him in the gut.

He can’t really pinpoint when it became a thing, this feeling he had over what, in a sense, was supposed to be his mask for a short period of time. It felt as though one day he’d be the same as always, and the next he’d feel off at the reminder that it was a mask, only he knows better.

Maybe it was attachment, or force of habit, of however it was called when someone got so used to acting a certain way that it becomes hard to go back to normal. All Virgil knows, is that it’s problematic, because the plan is already in motion, and he cannot be the one to stop it in its tracks.

\- .... . ... . / .... . .-.. .--. / -- . / .- ...- --- .. -.. / .-- .-. .. - .. -. --. / -... .-.. --- -.-. -.- ...

He heard the steps before the voices, and the voices before he saw their owners. He should’ve expected this really, because of course Cecile would have them get the tour.

In his quick reaction, which consists mostly of hiding behind the tree he’s been leaning on and out of sight, he has the time to hate the omega a little. Only a little, because Cecile, though incorrigible, still manages to do things in the right way for Virgil to find him charming; it’s a terrifying power for one person to have, and he’s glad the person who possesses it is just as fond of him.

It was an odd dynamic, the one where they all followed after the omega like loyal dogs, and spoke volumes of the kind of power Cecile had. Maybe that was why Virgil was so unbothered by Cecile’s nearly manic tendencies, even though he couldn’t care for them on the omega’s partner; granted, Defron and Cecile were two different people.

He doesn’t pay enough attention to understand what is being said, but he listens for how close they are and how long they stay. Eventually, he hears them moving away, and he lets out a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding.  

.- / -.-. .... .- -. --. . / --- ..-. / .--. . .-. ... .--. . -.-. - .. ...- . / .-- .. - .... / ..-. .-. .. . ...

Logan spends most of the tour trying to find the similarities between Cecile and Virgil, it is harder now that the previously perceived omega wasn’t there. There was a bit of a bitter taste to that discovery, because part of Logan had known all along, but the way Cecile treated the issue sat wrong with him.

Cecile explains how their group works, talks about the division into age groups, and how there’s very few people in each group, but a lot of people in total; the omega goes on about how the base works, and what it has to offer, while touching a little on the story. Built originally as a hiding place during the letter wars, it’s been slowly expanded and worked on by generation after generation, all while the resistance slowly but surely chipped away at the system’s inner workings; though it wasn’t until recently that they gathered enough data to make a proper dent on it.

“And now that our little experiment was successful, we can move onto more damaging heists”

Cecile’s voice was very different when he wasn’t high on adrenaline, it was clear the omega had a very good grip on how his tone affected how others viewed him. It made Logan wonder if Virgil had this ability too, if perhaps their group wasn’t the only one tricked; after all, he had clearly seen a look of distress flash by the other’s face before he made his exit.


	8. VIII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This takes a while to update because I’m also working on an idea I’ve had in my head since I was 13, that includes so far an entirely made up religion and an entirely made up language, which is pretty time consuming; also, I don’t feel all that comfortable with these characters.  
> I feel emotionally drained my dudes

It was later, once they were given permission to roam through the parts they’ve been shown to, that Logan found himself going back to the garden/greenhouse; looking for a bit of solitude and fresh air, or as fresh as it could be when underground. Patton had opted for a nap, which Logan couldn’t blame him for as it was quite the stressful day, Roman on the other hand had jumped at the offer given by one of the resistance alphas to go train; for what exactly, they didn’t say.

Logan doesn’t know if he should be surprised when he sees Virgil sitting under the trees, the lightbulbs’ light falls through the leaves and onto him, painting him spotted shadows. It takes Logan getting close enough to notice the other is asleep to realize he’s been holding his breath.

Virgil is the picture of peace, but it’s clear that it wasn’t like that before sleep took him over, and it’s a wonder they didn’t even hear him when they passed through here.

The blocker is wearing out and if Logan had any doubt that Virgil wasn’t biologically omega, then he would’ve known then. Asleep as he is, Virgil is incapable of hiding his scent, and it slowly fills the air with the dustiness of earth and the warmth of a cup of tea, and well as the almost bitter but unmistakable hint that gives away his letter.

Logan figures the scent he had previously was not his own, but rather belonged to one of the omegas in the resistance, and Cecile’s words repeat in his head by bits, just concise enough for Logan to know it was a trade; one scent for another.

A double set of footsteps coming from a direction they weren’t lead to, but Logan was curious about, has him tearing his gaze away from the sleeping boy and onto a beta and an omega. The omega, Logan recognizes as the one that lead them through the blown up wall, the beta he doesn’t, but neither one has introduced themselves, so Logan does not know their names.

The omega gives the sleeping alpha a clearly fond look, before turning to Logan.

“Hey, do you think you could pick him up? I’m sure he’ll be better in his bed”

Their voice is soft and lingering towards a whisper, not daring to disturb the peace that has settled over this room; the beta at their side eyes Logan warily, and it occurs to him that he’s being tested. Virgil, as it turns out, is a lot lighter than he looks, also surprisingly muscular from what Logan can feel through his layers of clothing.

“I will guide our newbie to the dorms, Cecile is in the training area”

The beta frowns giving a pointed look to Logan.

“I don’t think- “

“You are in no position to question orders Alistair”

The omega says this in a stern tone, voice still barely above a whisper, a sharp looking nail raised threateningly close to the beta’s face, nail painted a metallic green. The beta clenches their fists but nods and walks away, the omega turns to Logan again, amicable smile at the ready.

“Come on then”

.-.. . - / ...- .. .-. --. .. .-.. / ... .-.. . .--. .--. / ..--- -.- .---- ---..

The training area is actually on a lower level and reeks of chlorine, so Roman guesses there’s a pool nearby, he doesn’t get to confirm this as Cecile guides him into a shooting range, inside there’s an alpha setting up the targets.

This alpha is a little shorter that Roman, with curly black hair that reaches their shoulders, dark lips that curl into a grin as darker eyes settle on the two of them. They make their way to Roman and Cecil in a few jumped steps and offers Roman a hand, the scent of fireworks and canned peaches making itself known around them.

“Name’s Tanya Ford, explosives expert, and your teacher for the day, as our regular guy is out on business”

Roman takes a moment to take them in, noticing the scars on their skin that he can’t help but blame on the explosives they just mentioned, and he wonders if the beta back on the other place was a buddy of theirs.

“Roman Pierce, pleasure”

Cecile smiles and steps back towards the door.

“I’ll leave him in your capable hands then”

They stand straight and make the motions of a proper salute, which seems to amuse the omega.

“Yes sir!”

Cecile rolls his eyes before leaving, and then Roman is left with Tanya.

“Shall we test your capabilities with firearms”

He thinks they’ll get along just fine.

“We shall”

.... --- .-- / -- .- -. -.-- / .--. --- ...- / -.-. .... .- -. --. . ... / -.-. .- -. / .. / ..-. .. - ..--..

Kristi knows the look in the newbie’s eyes, and she also knows that the hint of alpha she gets from their scent is a lie; she knows because they’re not the first person she’s met to use such a trick. It’s a little funny, because it makes them very fit for the resistance in the psychological sense.

Kristi also knows Virgil, she’s noticed how effortlessly he played his part, how comfortable he had looked, but she doesn’t say a thing; this is something Virgil has to figure out on his own, he can’t be pushed.

They put Virgil on his bed, and Kristi takes the time to write him a note for when he wakes up, asking the newbie for their name, so there are no confusions; the last thing she wants is to add to Virgil’s load. She will have to have a few words with Cecile, because her friend looks about as awful as when she first met him, and that will not be accepted; but later, because her fellow omega was busy being a good leader at the moment.

She guides Logan away from the dorms and onto the make-shift library, so that they may talk more calmly; they strike her as the type to like libraries, probably the tie.

“I’m sure you have questions, and I’m sure most of them have gone unanswered; so feel free to fire away now, and I’ll answer to the best of my ability”

She isn’t kidding, the two people who actually have enough info to answer Q&As have not done their jobs, she knows her boys, and they are both suckers for seeming mysterious, the little shits. Logan seems to think it over, and it’s refreshing that he doesn’t just make her a hundred questions in tandem a la Lyle Pearson; that alpha needed to press a little heavier on the brakes.

“I know what you think is wrong with the system, but what are you really fighting against?”

Kristi drops the gentle smile, joining her hands together and intertwining her fingers together; she should’ve known he was a smart one, those were always the more complicated ones.

“We are trying to get rid of the letters”


	9. IX

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now we’re getting somewhere   
> Virgil and Cecil are not actually related, but they do care for each other in an almost brotherly way (as based on my own relationship with my sibling, but you’ll see it later).

“We are trying to get rid of the letters”

It’s not what Logan had been expecting, and he knows there is more to the omega’s words

“What do you mean?”

They smile once again, but there’s an almost dangerous glint to this one.

“Humanity is very much like a virus, with the uncanny ability to adapt at head spinning speeds, and this ability is what caused everything”

They tap their fingers against the table they are sitting at, the sound all but amplified by the room.

“We were too careless, to self-absorbed, but we weren’t the ones to pay the prize, our planet was dying, but we were only lasting longer”

Her smile turns into a grimace, as if the notion hurts her directly, and he thinks that, in a way, it does.

“Or we were supposed to, we were stopped half way into the process, because the few changes we did go through made us easier to control”

They sound like they’re close to crying, bitterness swirling in her tone.

“So they pair all omegas with alphas, keep them away from betas, because letters are the recessive genome, and if they didn’t the letters would disappear in a generation or two”

And then, with anger burning like fire in her pupils, grey eyes, Logan notes absentmindedly, they sneer at him in that all too animalistic way that’s only possible when you are anything other than beta.

“That’s why there are more betas than anything else even though the system has alphas and omegas breeding like bunnies, because the letters were meant to be temporary”

Logan swallows, shakily standing from his seat, world tilted from its axis.

“I need some time to think”

The omega nods sagely, experienced and thus understanding, but otherwise remaining in place.

“You can take the room next to Virgil, the one that ends on a 5”

Logan nods in acknowledgement and takes his leave.

.-- .- ... / - .... .- - / --. --- --- -.. ..--..

Eventually, they are called for dinner, lead to the biggest room they’d seen yet, to learn that there were more people than the few they’ve met. The room is lined with long tables, all but one filled with people of different ages and letters, Roman is a little impressed at the sheer number of people.

Tanya guides him to the almost empty table, in which Roman can see Virgil quietly working on some food, at his sides there’s two others, one is Thomas, the other is a beta Roman doesn’t know.

There’s also Patton, who’s been seated beside another one of the bets they met before, if Roman remembers correctly their name is Blanche, and they are speaking softly to them in a language Roman can’t understand. Tanya makes him seat in front of Virgil and away from Patton, mostly because the omega is clearly still working through the remains of shock, possibly because she knows what Virgil has done.

Logan arrives last, followed by Cecile and another omega, Cecil seats by the beta with the nasty burn marks, all but collapsing against them. Roman feels cold eyes on him when he stares for longer than polite, and when he turns to the source there is Virgil, face set into a hard frown, and for all the anger he feels towards his fellow alpha, he cannot blame him for it; it’s kind of reassuring though, knowing there’s more to Virgil than the lie, that he’s protective over his brother.

/ .--. . .-. ... .--. . -.-. - .. ...- . /

Virgil is slowly returning to the real world, inch by painful inch, and he’s grateful for Thomas scent of freshly cut grass and vanilla extract, which contrasts nicely with Alistair’s coffee and toast; it’s also making him hungry, but as he comes to, he realizes they are in the eating area, so that’ll be solved soon.

He’s fully present by the time the three new members start making it to the table. He only glances once at Patton, exchanging looks with Blanche before they settle; Roman comes in with Tanya which means Jermain and Ida are probably still out there, and then Logan enters with both Kristi and Cecile.

Kristi gives the table a smile before she settles besides Lyle, while Cecile drops by Defron; both of whom Virgil had yet to notice in the table, but to be fair, he’d been disassociating before. He’s not surprised per se at how much attention Cecile and Defron attract from the newcomers, considering how the system works, but he is worried.

But then Roman starts being less surprised and more curious, the kind that only brought trouble. And damn it Virgil is not letting the alpha get involved in the mess that is the relationship between those too, so he glares at Roman until he turns away from the happy couple.

It isn’t Cecile he’s worried about; the omega is more than capable of knocking Roman of his feet without breaking a sweat if necessary.  No, the problem would be Defron, because he’s not beyond manipulating others if he thinks it’ll benefit his cause, whatever that is; the only reason no one’s said anything about it is because Cecile has him wrapped around his fingers, the only person deceit is loyal to.

The only person all eight of them would listen to and follow after with no hesitation; it’s really no wonder that he’s the leader of their group. He wondered though, if the three people he brought in would be swayed as easily as the rest of them.


	10. X

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Why did no one tell me about Hadestown? A Greek myth turned musical? Yes, please! How is it that I had to find this by pure chance?

They weren’t expecting it to be easy, not after such an extravagant display to act as an introduction to the fact that they actually existed, not that they could complain. The resistance had been at this for ages, but the system was crafty in pulling all signs of their existence under the rug, deciding them non-threatening.

So overconfident in their grasp on people they forgot to triple check who they were letting inside their doors, forgetting there was someone working against them. They didn’t want the people to know, because resistances are nothing without word spreading; so they had to be as loud and chaotic as possible, so they wouldn’t be able to hide it anymore.

Sure, it made this mission up in difficulty, but that was a small price to pay; now the people knew there was a different point of view, now, there was a spark for them to turn into a fire.

They round another corner, feet light and senses alert to any and all signs of guards, getting out is always harder than getting in, but that won’t stop them. Jermaine glances at Ida, checking that she hasn’t fallen behind, knowing there’ll be hell to pay if he goes back alone; peanut colored eyes roll at him under wild, almost black, brown eyebrows.

He moves his eyes back to where they need to be, and keeps his feet moving; it doesn’t bode well for them if he indulges himself in distractions like his brain wants him to.

.--. .-.. . .- ... . / ... . -. -.. / .. -. ... .--. .. .-. .- - .. --- -. / --- ...- . .-.

The sound of metal hitting metal, metal hitting the ground, clicking of reloading, a deep breath.

When did it become like this? When did shooting become cathartic?

The next one hits the can dead center, sending it flying across the room to bounce on the wall. He’s always better when stressed, more accurate, deadlier.

“I figured I’d find you here”

He reloads, moves to the next target and shoots, the bullet pierces the can like it’s made of paper, sending to barrel down into the ground; but he’s knocked worse things than cans, so the sound of metal hitting the floor is preferable.

“Virgil”

He huffs, shooting at the last target, precise even from an angle, silent as the process repeats to better savor the sounds, he shoulders his riffle and turns around. Moss green eyes meet light blue ones, and Virgil sighs deeply.

“Cecile…”

The omega raises a hand in the most non-threatening way of which he’s capable and gives him a small smile.

“You’re allowed to practice all you want, but that isn’t why you’re here”

Virgil rolls his eyes and goes pick up his cans, he’ll have to ask Lyle for more later, as the alpha’s been stuck keeping track of their pantry, all empty cans go to Virgil; in exchange Virgil lets himself be manhandled whenever Lyle feels like wrestling. There had been that one time Jermain had wanted to try fighting Virgil himself, but Virgil only did hand-to-hand for empty cans so he just gave a dead pan ‘no’, and when Jermain had tried to provoke him, he made him knock himself against the wall, much to Lyle and Tanya’s amusement; Cecile called this sparing matches alpha-bonding time, Virgil supposed there were worse ways to interact with others, at least after training no one bothered him for wanting to be alone.

“You know why I’m here”

Cecile sighs and nods heavily, Virgil gets the rest of his stuff and leaves the room, the omega doesn’t follow him, it’s for the best. He heads to the hand-to-hand area knowing Lyle would be there, making a stop to get rid of his dented cans properly.

.. .----. ...- . / -. . ...- . .-. / ... .... --- - / .- / --. ..- -. / - .... --- ..- --. .... / .. .----. ...- . / .... . .-.. -.. / -- .- -. -.—

Roman supposed it made sense for people who were, by the look of things, prepping for an all-out battle, to have plenty of space dedicated to training. Tanya assigned herself as Roman’s personal guide/trainer for the time being, saying she had always wanted to do it but Jermain had won the position; Roman had yet to mention this Jermain person, as they were off in a mission, but he could gather that they were good at what they did.

There’s a sound of skin hitting skin, combined with panting and the smell of sweat, Tanya has an exited smile as he pushes Roman through the door. He isn’t expecting what he sees.

In a ring of sorts two figures are exchanging blows with practiced ease, he surprised at seeing Virgil, but now that he’s shed the hoodie Roman can tell this is something he does often enough. Tanya is grinning from ear to ear as she watches them fighting, her hands together like she finds this particularly adorable.

“You look happy”

She turns to him, grin still holding strong.

“This is like watching a lion play-fight with a cub”

Roman blinks and looks back, he’s not entirely sure who is which on the metaphor, but that doesn’t matter. He’s still rather irritated, and he thinks maybe sparing against Virgil will help with that, so instead he asks.

“Think I could get Virgil to fight with me?”

Tanya lets out a dry laugh.

“Virge only practices hand-to-hand because he wants Lyle to give him targets”

“What about an actual fight”

Tanya turns to him, a serious expression on her face.

“Your funeral”

Roman huffs offended, he’s sure he can handle Virgil; after all, Tanya is implying Virgil doesn’t practice, so Roman has the advantage of experience. Perhaps it’s a mistake, that Roman takes that thought as his guide when he walks down into the ring, once the two alphas have stopped.


	11. XI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I’m a fan of the head-cannon that Virgil is actually the strongest side, since he’s the fight/flight reflex.

There’s a moment of tension, a moment where time slowed down and gave him the opportunity to make a choice. He demands answers, spitting venom at someone who tricked him, who kept things quiet.

One moment he’s defiant and burning with the need to let rage out, the next his back’s against the wall and his feet don’t meet the ground, and there’s a vice grip around his neck; Virgil doesn’t snarl like other alphas would, instead he’s eerily calm and he holds Roman in place.

“You didn’t have to join; no one was making you”

And then he lets him go to drop to the ground panting, and he makes a sweeping motion with his hand when Roman looks up at him.

“You could have gone back to your comfortable life where you’d be given an omega to use as you pleased, keep your illusion that the system is good while you took control over someone’s life”

“Kovic”

Roman watches as Virgil’s entire body tenses, and follows his gaze to the omega he met during lunch, she crosses her arms and Virgil takes a deep breath before walking to them.

“We talked about this Virge, don’t do combat when you’re pissed, what if you hurt the one you were paired with”

Virgil frowns and gestures at Roman, who is still on the ground, with his arm.

“I was paired with him”

The omega blinks a few times and then frowns.

“Jesus, the system really doesn’t know shit”

Roman thinks he should be offended, but then Virgil’s laughing, a breathy and uncontrollable thing, though bright and clearly rare from the look in everyone in the room.

“Are you gonna take Virge, Kristi? I was hoping to get a few more rounds”

Roman is really getting tired of playing the pronoun name here.

“Are we ever going to get introduced to everyone?”

All eyes in the room turn to him, the omega, Kristi apparently, blinks owlishly.

“You weren’t introduced to the rest of the section”

Roman shakes his head no, and Kristi lets out a string of words in a language Roman doesn’t know but is willing to bet are insults.

“Ok, ok, I assume you know Tanya because she has manners, and Virgil because you were paired to him briefly”

“Yes”

“Well then, I’m Kristi McDaniel, technically I’m the second in command”

She makes a motion towards the remaining alpha in the room, who jumps up with a wide smile.

“Hi, I’m Lyle, Lyle Pearson, and I’m in charge of the food, but you’ll learn about that soon enough”

He winks at Roman like he knows something he doesn’t.

“I’ll get the others to introduce themselves later, Tanya can take you to the infirmary”

Then she turns to Lyle with a hard look.

"And you can go clean your room since you have free time"

The alpha’s face falls, and it’s clear that he’s going to snap at her, but a pointed glare from Virgil makes him bite his tongue. Roman feels his curiosity spike at the interaction, at the way both Tanya and Virgil were perfectly comfortable with being bossed around by omegas, and were ready to keep anyone who wasn’t in check.

Roman takes the hand Tanya offers him, and lets his fellow alpha pull him into a standing position.

“Come on, you can meet our betas properly”

Roman chances one last glance at Virgil, who is now speaking softly to Kristi, before he follows Tanya out of the room.

-.- .-. .. ... - .. / ... .-- . .- .-. ... / .. -. / .. .-. .. ... .... / -... - .--

Logan doesn’t know what makes him walk to the artificial garden once again, but that’s where he finds himself. He isn’t expecting to see Patton there, and he knows he is possibly the worst choice for what is clearly needed in the situation, but he recognizes that Patton needs someone who’s a little more familiar than those who would be good at helping.

So he approaches carefully, and when the mocha eyes lift to him, he simply motions to the stone bench the omega has chosen to rest at.

“May I sit with you”

Patton pats the free space in the bench twice with a timid smile, and goes back to looking at the plants, Logan keeps his gaze there too because he knows it can be for others to look at you expectantly; eventually, Patton lets out what sounds like a chuckle.

“This is kind of funny”

Logan turns to him.

“How so?”

Patton gives him a sheepish smile.

“Just, sitting on a bench with an alpha I’m not mated to, just watching nature”

“I suppose, given the circumstances, one could find such a situation to be humorous”

Patton blinked at him before smiling a bit brighter.

“Well darn, aren’t you a smart cookie”

Logan bites back a comment on the fact that cookies do not possess the capability of being smart because he’s aware that Patton doesn’t actually mean it literally.

“Would you answer me something honestly?”

Logan is surprised, not by the question, but rather the now serious look Patton has donned on his face.

“I like to believe so, yes”

Patton brushes his hair behind his ear cheeks flushing slightly.

“What do you think of Virgil?”

.-- .. --. --. .-.. . ... / . -.-- . -... .-. --- .-- ...

Jermain knew they were hoping to get some new faces in the section, but well, he wasn’t expecting anyone this lovely.  He’s overly aware of Ida’s eyes on him, and he just knows what kind of expression she’ll have if he turns, so he doesn’t, instead trying to keep his eyes on Tanya and not on the pretty face next to her.

“Jer, you’re back! Did it go well?”

Jermain flinches when his body wants to shrug, forgetting that he’s hurt.

“It was a little trickier than planned, but yeah”

“Trickier than planned my tits, you’re lucky they only grazed you”

“We knew it’d be harder now that they’re forced to acknowledge our existence, a shootout was bound to happen”

Ida rolls her eyes harder than really necessary and Tanya makes a small jump.

“Right, introductions guys, we have newbies!”

Ida sighs at her, a fond look on her face before she looks at the new alpha.

“We saw each other before but I’m Ida Santiago”

Jermain finally allows himself to look at the beautiful alpha, taking in every feature greedily before trying for a charming smile as he introduces himself.

“I’m Jermain Powell, weapon expert”

This seems to cause some recognition as the alpha turns to Tanya, who give him a pointed look before leading him to the empty bed.

“His name is Roman Pierce, and he tried to fight Virgil”

Jermain winces in sympathy and Ida gives a pained smile.

“I’ll get Blanche”


	12. XII

“I’m not sure how you’ll take this”

Patton makes a motion urging him to speak regardless.

“I knew he was hiding something beyond the whole being with the resistance thing. And to be quite honest, I think there’s more to it than what we’ve been lead to believe”

Patton scrunches his nose.

“About Virgil?”

Logan tangles his hands together so that he may keep them from shaking like he knows they will when he starts explaining.

“Are you aware about people not identifying with the gender assigned to them at birth?”

“Yes…”

“I think Virgil is like that, only, rather than not identifying with a specific gender, he simply doesn’t identify with his second nature”

Patton blinks and looks at his own hands.

“Oh”

And Logan thinks it’s a little sad that this is the best reaction he’s had to talking about this; and then the mocha eyes turn to him again, something wise in them that hadn’t been there before.

“You like him”

It isn’t what Logan envisioned him saying, but he realizes with a start, that it is true. It is dizzying almost, to recognize the fact that he’s infatuated with Virgil, but the revelation is almost expected in its nature.

Patton gives him a gentle smile, and Logan is overly aware of the resigned undertones it carries but remains unaware of their meaning.

“I think he likes you too”

Logan doesn’t know how to respond; but a part of him, small and uncertain from hardly ever being listened to, is insistently hopeful for those words to be true.

.. -- .- --. .. -. . / -- . / .-- .. -. -.- .. -. --. / .- - / -.-- --- ..-

Virgil is unsurprised when he’s dragged to a meeting with Defron and Cecile by Kristi, he’s unsure why the omega keeps doing it, but neither Cecile nor Defron seem to have an issue with letting him stay. He gets to see Kristi scold the other two for not doing things properly, and though Defron seems ready to engage in a game of sharpest tongue wins, he keeps his mouth shut when Cecile lowers his head in a clear show of submission.

Eventually the meeting goes back to normal, and Virgil just sits in a corner quietly not being; he only comes back when Kristi gently shakes him. Oddly enough, the whole Kristi dragging him somewhere Virgil has no right to be in, is actually a very good way to get him to stop a little; Virgil tries not to over analyze what that means, particularly when he’s finally feeling good, or well… maybe just, better.

Kristi tells him Cecile decided to assigned them to take on one of their new members for specific training.

“Since Tanya took Roman, and our five betas are busy, Cici wants the two of us to take care of the remaining two”

“Is this you indirectly telling me you’re setting me up?”

Kristi scowls at him, which tells him he’s partly true at the very least, which is not very comforting considering the last time they tried to do that.

“Even if you had no interest he wouldn’t have let you take the omega”

 Virgil runs a hand through his hair, and knows she’s right because he knows all the limitations, and he can pretend like he’s actually got a voice here all he wants, but at the end of the day, he’s probably only higher on the ladder than Lyle.

“Fine, you take Patton and I take Logan”

Kristi has this sad look on her face, and Virgil thinks she’s pretending too, pretending Virgil is anything other than an indecisive mess who got way too comfortable being someone he’s not.


	13. XIII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Check, Please! Is fucking beautiful my dudes, and if you don’t know what I’m talking about, do yourselves a favor and google search this web-comic. Like, canonically healthy gays as the main ship? Could you ask for anything else?

There’s a difference between Cecile and Anthony Quinn; after all, he’s the reason nobody so much as raised an eyebrow at the idea that Virgil would be related to Cecile. But there’s more to the difference between the two than their looks, or their letters.

Though, to be fair, the fact that his father was an alpha probably didn’t help Cecile’s relationship with him.

Cecile had had to live his entire life dealing with the fact that he isn’t who his father wants him to be, he isn’t Astrid, who’s 12 feet under instead of the regular six, because that’s just how it is for them; and his father can pretend it isn’t his fault that there’s no alpha Quinn in the younger age divisions, but they both know the truth.

Perhaps that’s why Cecil is so protective of Virgil, because he reminds the omega of his late sibling; and maybe Astrid is why Cecile doesn’t allow himself to let it out that he knows what Virgil really meant, because he’s been witness to the dance between what the world assigns and what feels right before, even if it wasn’t the exact same, and he’ll do anything to keep Virgil from repeating the kind of end Astrid picked.

Maybe it’s both at once and Defron has some truth to his complains over just how unnecessarily complicated grief was; Cecile doesn’t know, but thinking of his boyfriend does bring a smile to his face, so there’s that.

Cecile would’ve preferred to talk to his mother about the current state of affairs, but Marlene Angevin was currently busy with the slow process of getting herself separated from this impossible man, and Cecile doesn’t have it in himself to blame her for it. Not that Cecile gets on any better with her, but she’s way less likely to antagonize him just so he feels both infantile and unworthy.

He mentally prepares for that clusterfuck, and is thankful he has everyone so busy with the newbies and the missions, because he’d rather not blow up on anyone when he eventually leaves this room enraged.

.... --- .--. . / -.-- --- ..- / .-.. .. -.- . -.. / - .... .- - / .. -. ... .. --. .... - / - --- / -.-. . -.-. .. .-.. .

Virgil doesn’t know what he was expecting, like, logistically he knew the chances of the people he brought actually having some experience with weapons were slim to none; Roman taking so easily to guns was a surprise. Still, he had hoped the other alpha of the trio knew at least enough to defend himself.

He’s not completely sure what to do with the alpha who’s clearly never partaken on any tumble, until Logan finds him on the snipping course. Virgil is, as per usual, getting rid of his pent up energy by knocking his well-earned cans into the ground, one fake bullet at a time.

Virgil adjusts the height of the shooting platform according to how he feels, since he only comes here when frustrated, which is why he’s at a decent distance from the floor when Logan comes in, he sighs deeply before knocking his last few targets and letting himself down.

“Let me set the targets up”

There’s a reason Virgil practices with cans instead of using the targets they have at the ready, but he’s glad when Logan doesn’t make any questions. He doesn’t know if he’s ready or willing to answer.

.. / -.. .. -.. / - …. .. … / --- -. . / -- --- … - .-.. -.-- / -… -.-- / -- -.-- … . .-.. ..-.

There are plenty of things wrong with the current state of the world, plenty of questionable things.

There’s something to be said about the system, that when that first group of omegas decided not to bow their heads and play the part of dolls, they didn’t do anything to stop them from running away. He guesses their line of thought went something like ‘what can they do?’, unknowing just how much of a pull omegas could have; there was a reason they were the ones leading the age sections after all.

There’s something to be said about the resistance, that they waited this long to make their move, that said move only happened because Cecile decided he had enough of sitting ducks, and asked Defron about the proper way to start a revolution, and how to win it.

The beta wasn’t completely sure why he’d been trusted with those decisions, or why he was still allowed an input to their moves now. But he decided to do his best to keep his leader on the winning course.

He wasn’t counting on a relationship developing from this, but he wouldn’t say he hadn’t wanted one. Cecile was good, not only at being a leader, but with him in particular, and maybe Defron had a soft spot for the crazed glint in the omega’s eyes; perhaps he liked all the wrong things, but it was a two-way street.

So he’s willing to keep an eye on Virgil, because he knows the kind of relationship Cecile maintains with him, and thinks it’s funny how close to their little lie it is. Virgil is protective but not because of that bothersome, just enough to let Defron know he better make Cecile happy; the beta is mostly ok with that, still amused though.

He watches carefully as Virgil walks one of the new alphas through shooting a riffle, intelligently starting the newbie on the ground instead of the adjustable platform. There’s a reverence in how Virgil snipes, and it comes out as a rare calm as he teaches the boy - Logan if Defron remembers correctly - how to do it.

Logan hadn’t shown much potential for the more physical part of their plans, but he seemed to take to sniping; he supposed they could always use a second snipper if nothing else.


	14. XIV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I 👏AM👏 TIRED👏 AND👏 UNINSPIRED

It all comes down to one stupid, life threatening, too well planned mission; one that would take every last one of them to pull off.

It takes weeks of planning and preparing, Virgil learns that while Logan isn’t the best at fighting, he’s a brilliant mind, and a good eye; he’s put as a sniper, but Cecile allows him to help with the plan, and the alpha spends a lot of time with Defron, pouring over strategies and maps. Virgil does get time with him too, and it makes them grow closer together.

Close enough for confessions, whispered words in locked rooms, talks about Greek letters, instincts, and scents. Virgil slowly becomes comfortable with the idea of calling himself an omega, and eventually, brave enough to tell Cecile.

It’s weird, and takes time to set in. But when his scent takes on a sweet edge without modifiers, or he reacts submissively to growls, he thinks it might be worth it.

It’s nice in the quiet hours where he thinks maybe the closeness between himself and Logan runs deeper than their shared dislike for assigned natures. It’s terrifying in the heavily scented moment that comes when they align for the very first time, and Virgil is too overwhelmed to do anything other than hide in his room and wait for his rut to pass, only allowing Thomas to come in; which has left an awkward gap between him and Logan, where they are both equally terrible at communication.

There’s also whatever Roman and Patton have going with each other… ok, it’s a relationship, they’re corny and a little over the top, Virgil doesn’t exactly know how he feels about them until he’s sitting in the couch listening to his de-facto brother talking about another micro mission that helps set up the main heist they’re trying to pull off, and Logan is right there, and suddenly holding someone’s hand feels like winning the war. Maybe Virgil is sort of love-struck, sue him.

There are worse ways to spend the time.

-. --- / . ..-. ..-. --- .-. - / .--. ..- -

It is easier to divide it into singular moments.

Tanya guides Roman, Lyle and Defron through a head set as they set up an intricate line of bombs and somehow make it out of there before they explode, sending the Office of Mating Matches to collapse into itself.

Blanche and Alistair take turns distracting people too easily tricked by borrowed scents, while Ida steals information through binaries, or however hacking is supposed to work.

Cecile, Kristi and Patton go into the System HQ armored to the teeth, a line of surefire shots with deadly accuracy form two different angles.

It is an array of attacks in practiced synchrony, some of which were done by people with names we don’t know. We are never told about the other age sections, because none of them thought to write down their stories.

We are told the system fell in a single day, but that it’s twisted ways echoed through our minds for generations to pass. And we are told that once the knowledge set in that we had been freed, that we weren’t before, we started slowly but surely rebuilding ourselves.

We are told there existed a time in which we were divided by letters, and that when they disappeared, peace was found.

The end.


End file.
